Dear Valued Beauty Professionals,
I hope you have all been taking advantage of this glorious weather while it lasts.
Here are the latest recommendations as we come out of Covert Level 4 and into Level 3.
As of yesterday Tuesday 28 th April, we must observe the following:
The Golden Rules for life at Alert Level 3:
1. Stay home ~ if you are not at work, school, exercising or getting essentials
then you must be at home, the same as at Alert Level 4.
2. Work and learn from home if you can. We still want the vast majority of
people working from home, and children and young people learning from
home. At-risk students and staff should also stay at home, and they will be
supported to do so. Early learning centers and schools will physically be open
for up to Year 10 for families that need them.
3. Make your business COVID-19 safe. COVID-19 has spread in workplaces,
so the quid pro quo of being able to open is doing it in a way that doesn’t
spread the virus.
4. Stay regional. You can exercise at parks or beaches within your region, but
the closer to home the better. Activities must be safe – keep 2 metres away
from anybody not in your bubble. Make minimal trips.
5. Keep your bubble as small as possible. If you need to, you can expand
your bubble a small amount to bring in close family, isolated people or
caregivers.
6. Wash your hands often with soap. Then dry them. Cough and sneeze into
your elbow.
7. If you are sick, stay at home and quickly seek advice from your GP or
Health line about getting a test. There is no stigma to COVID-19. We will
only be successful if everyone is willing to play their part in finding it wherever
it is.
Businesses can use the week ahead to prepare for Alert Level 2.
Meanwhile essential workers going back to work must observe the following.
Any preparation should be done in line with Alert Level 4 restrictions.
The Golden Rules for businesses at Alert Level 3
1. If your business requires close physical contact it can’t operate.
2. Your staff should work from home if they can.
3. Customers cannot come onto your premises. Unless you are a
supermarket, dairy, petrol station, pharmacy, permitted health service or
essential service.
4. Your business must be contactless. Your customers can pay online, over
the phone or in a contactless way. Delivery or pick-up must also be
contactless.
5. Basic hygiene measures must be maintained. Physical distancing, hand
washing and regularly cleaning surfaces. Workers must stay home if they are
sick.
6. If you used PPE in your business before COVID-19, then keep using it in
the same way. If you didn’t use PPE in your business before COVID-19,
you don’t need it now. This is advice for retailers, manufacturers and the
service industries. Different advice applies to essential healthcare workers,
border agencies, courts and tribunal staff, first responders and corrections
staff. Visit health.govt.nz for more advice.
7. You must meet all other health and safety obligations.
For the beauty industry we cannot open our doors to treat clients face to face until we get the green light from Government, hopefully on Monday 11 th May.
Clinics can have products couriered in a non-contact way with payment online. These deliveries need to be organised between you and your distributor. Your distributor must be registered with MBIE and hold a Business number.
Your Covid-19 Safety Plan:
Over the last couple of weeks, I have been informing you of the Covid-19 safety plan that you are required to have in place before you can reopen your doors
As part of your clinic’s preparation, we will be reminding you of what is required for your clinic to help it meet the requirements of MoH and keep your clinic staff and clients safe.
Please find attached a Safety Plan template provided by WorkSafe NZ which can be used for your Covid-19 safety plan. This can be used separately for Covid-19 or incorporated into your existing clinic safety plan manual to make your overall clinic health and safety requirements extra robust.
Over the past week our IT team have been working extremely hard to design an online client tracing form. For members this is free, unfortunately for non-members there is a $25.00 application fee. So, you will have a choice of what works best for your clinic.
This online form is available by phoning NZBPST on M: 02102294638
By using this method of client tracing only one person is touching the keypad and avoids the spread of corona virus which is so easily done when people are sharing and touching pens and paper.
Prior to reopening all clinics must have a COVID-19 Safety Plan in place.
Consultations, Records and Client Tracing
Record all clients’ contact details, treatment dates, therapist’s name and the people who come in contact with that person [this is another reason why it is so important to conduct consultations for every client that comes through your door and keep accurate treatment records].
Client tracing requirements: date, time of arrival, departure, contact details, where they are going to next. This includes couriers and any casuals that may walk in.
Check List:
Conduct pre-open meeting with staff [non-contact] start with a clinic staff meeting and write extra protocols for your clinic.
Establishing any new roles for employees.
Hold induction courses for new or contractual employees on safety plan
Make sure you are all on the same page.
Test staff with scenarios to make sure they understand the rules. Inform your clients of their role in preserving hygiene when visiting your clinic. If they feel unwell, they must cancel their appointment. Refer them to their GP. Have them provide a medical certificate before recommencing their treatments.
Latest finding suggest that Corona virus stays on plastic and smooth surfaces for up to 2-4 days and on cardboard up to 8 hours.
Place notices on front door or window explaining requirements of the COVID-19 alert status.
Provide hand sanitiser at the door and instruct clients to use it upon entering and leaving.
In addition to our health and hygiene guidelines, regularly disinfect doorknobs, light switches, telephones, eftpos terminals and constantly touched surfaces with disinfectants ~ Please Remember: Always use disinfectant products as per the directions of use & as per the intended use There are different contact times for individual products. Not all products are safe on all surfaces. They are not all the same].
Provide longer spaces between treatments to allow for extra cleaning on top of our normal health and Hygiene guidelines.
Practice donning and dotting of required PPE equipment.
Review all other hygiene protocols [Don’ lose focus of all the other pathogens you need to kill].
Have all staff use their own named plates, cups and disposable cutlery.
All staff bring their own meals to work. If a dishwasher is available all items are immediately washed, and containers taken home.
All bench surfaces are disinfected after use with disposable clothes and binned.
Regular cleaning of toilets and a cleaning schedule signed off with date, time and
person who did the last clean
Arrange chairs in waiting area to avoid client to client contact
Arrange with staff how to pass each other and clients along narrow hallways
How to navigate the backroom or any small spaces
As well as meeting local council health and Hygiene Bylaw requirements, the premises must provide good ventilation including cleaning of air filters in air conditioning units.
Place Covid-19 work posters at “front of house” and in appropriate areas in your business to remind people of what is required of them.
https://www.hqsc.govt.nz/our-programmes/patient-safety-week/publications-and-resources/publication/3457/
https://www.hqsc.govt.nz/our-programmes/patient-safety-week/publications-and-resources/publication/3457/
Remove all wrist and hand jewelry [harbors bacteria] except your wedding band.
Use hand lotion regularly to prevent dry, cracked hands, e.g, before and after work and before breaks.
Cover minor cuts and abrasions on hands and arms with a waterproof dressing and disposable gloves before starting work
Contact occupational health and safety if you have any dermatitis, skin allergies or infected lesions on your arms or hands.
Remove nail polish and keep nails short. The longer the nails the more bacteria can hide underneath.
In order for your PPE to be effective, you must be competent and consistent with how to use your PPE
Please follow this step by step guide on how to apply and remove your gloves so as to prevent the spread of pathogens
http://public-safety.berkeley.edu/oepweb/media/TIPS_FOR_REMOVING_GLOVES.
Place posters in appropriate areas for staff to review.
It is important that disposable gloves are:
Changed between clients.
Never washed or re-used.
Discarded and replaced with new gloves if there is evidence of tearing or deterioration.
Removed and disposed of when leaving a client for any reason.
Masks
Your mask is only as hygienic as you make it.
Please practice the following steps on how to apply and discard your mask to prevent the spread of pathogens.
Here is a protocol on making sure you are donning and dobbing your mask appropriately:
When applying a mask:
Wash hands with hot soapy water.
Hand sanitiser.
Make sure the coloured side of mask is facing out.
When applying mask only touch side elastic loops with little fingers and hook over ears, covering your face and nose.
Don’t touch the front of the mask with your hands except to pinch the clip over the nose to take on your nose shape.
When the mask is damp or moist discard it appropriately, hand wash and sanitise.
Or if you are going to another room to treat a new client, discard, hand wash and sanitise your hands, reapply a new mask, wash hands then hand sanitise again.
NEVER, when talking to someone pull the mask down and wear it under your chin or pull it up onto your forehead
When removing a face mask:
Wash hands thoroughly and hand sanitise.
Avoid touching the front of the mask.
Using your little fingers unhook the elastic loops from your ears. Allow the mask to fall off your little fingers into an appropriate bin without touching the front or rest of the mask.
DON’T pull the mask up over the top of your head to the back.
Discard the mask in appropriate bin, don’t re-use.
After removing your mask, wash hands with soap and water, dry hands thoroughly, use hand sanitiser.
Reporting Incidences:
Should any staff member become ill they must not come to work.
If they present with any Covid-19 symptoms it must be reported to Ministry of Health
Healthcare hotline Ph 0800 358 5453 and their GP
Follow all instructions issued by MoH regarding containment and closing of business
Have in place emergency cleaning procedures to implement in addition to your health and hygiene guidelines.
Follow guidelines below:
Staff members cannot return to work without for two weeks after testing clear for Covid-19.
The symptoms of COVID-19 are one or more of the following:
a cough
a high temperature (at least 38°C)
shortness of breath.
sore throat
sneezing and runny nose
temporary loss of smell
These symptoms do not necessarily mean you have COVID-19. The symptoms are similar to other illnesses that are much more common, such as cold and flu.
Shortness of breath is a sign of possible pneumonia and requires immediate medical attention.
Symptoms take up to 14 days to show after a person has been infected. A person can pass on the virus to others before they know they have it - from up to two days before symptoms develop.
If you have these symptoms, please telephone Healthline (for free) on
0800 358 5453 or your doctor immediately.
How will you gather information on the wellness of your workers to ensure that they are safe and well to work?
There are a range of reasons why staff may come to work despite being told that they should stay home if unwell. This will not necessarily be willful behavior. It is important to have open communication with employees to understand why they want to be at work.
Check in regularly with staff to ensure they are well. You could accompany this with a system that provides a self-symptom check for workers and other people before they enter the workplace. Your system must ensure that other people who do not routinely work there are screened.
It is essential you involve staff in deciding your system. It is recommended that checking occurs daily. Businesses may choose to do more to check their workers’ health. It is important that you engage with staff to decide what is appropriate for your business
You may also like to consider:
Setting up flexible leave arrangements to ensure employees stay at home and are not financially pressured to come to work when they have a respiratory infection
How you will follow-up to ensure staff only return if they have recovered or they have been tested and cleared of COVID-19.
Ministry of Health - workplace infectious disease prevention
General cleaning information following a suspected, probable or confirmed case of COVID-19
(This page was last updated 21 April 2020)
This information provides guidance on cleaning a room that has been used by a suspected, probable or confirmed COVID-19 case.
NZBPST’s Infection Prevention and Control officer can provide further guidance if required.
General Principles:
Good hand hygiene is essential to minimise transmission of infectious droplets.
Always wear disposable gloves when cleaning. When finished, place used gloves in a rubbish bin.
Wash your hands immediately after handling these items.
Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, making sure you dry them thoroughly. You can also use hand sanitiser (containing at least 60 percent alcohol) if soap and water are not available and if your hands are not visibly dirty. If using hand sanitiser, cover all surfaces of your hands and rub them together until they feel dry.
When cleaning thoroughly and efficiently it is good to remember two general principles.
Top to bottom: start cleaning surfaces higher up and work your way to the floor. This method ensures that any particulates or debris fall to the floor which will be cleaned last.
Clean to dirty: start by cleaning surfaces and objects that are cleaner and work your way to cleaning dirtier items (eg, toilets). Avoid going from an area that has not been cleaned to an area that has been cleaned. This avoids dirtying the cleaned area and will ensure you are not cross-contaminating items or surfaces.
Prior to cleaning:
Personal protective equipment (PPE) ~ Wear a disposable face mask, gown and gloves when cleaning. If the cleaning product manufacturer recommends eye protection, wear a face shield or goggles.
Order for putting on PPE:
1. hand hygiene
2. gown
3. mask
4. protective eye wear
5. gloves (these can include heavy duty household gloves).
Any hospital grade detergent/disinfectant products are suitable for cleaning following a suspected, probable or confirmed case of COVID-19. Read label of cleaning products and follow recommendations provided on product labels. Labels contain instructions for safe and effective use of the cleaning product, including precautions you should take when applying it. Specific PPE and dwell time (how long the cleaning product should remain wet on the surface before drying) should be included in product instructions.
Recommended cleaning product should be a 2-in-1 product (containing both cleaning and disinfectant properties) to increase efficiency. Always use as directed.
Keep the windows open for ventilation if possible.
Cleaning order:
1. Remove all linen (bedding, towels, cushion covers and other fabrics) for washing and put in plastic bag (or non-porous container with lid) for transport to laundry room. Use a washing machine and detergent to wash thoroughly with the warmest temperature recommended on the item’s label.
2. Remove all table-top appliances, crockery and cutlery and place in non-porous,
covered container for transport to dishwasher/kitchen. Clean all table-top appliances
(eg, kettle) according to instructions. Clean all household items, such as dishes, cups, eating utensils thoroughly, preferably in a commercial dishwasher.
3. Clean inside and outside of all built-in appliances (eg, refrigerator, oven)
4. Clean all ‘high-touch’ surfaces, such as counters, cupboards, tabletops, doorknobs, light switches and window blinds.
5. Spot-clean any marks on soft furnishings.
6. Clean bathroom fixtures, showers and toilets with a separate set of cleaning
equipment (disposable cleaning cloths, etc) using disinfectant or bleach solution.
Toilets should be last item in bathroom to clean.
7. Remove gloves, wash hands with soap and water and dry thoroughly with clean towel or paper towel, hand sanitise.
8. Remove gloves, wash hands, hand sanitise and put on clean gloves.
9. Vacuum the carpet. Steam cleaning of carpets and rugs is not required.
10. For hard floor surfaces, clean the floor with the prepared disinfectant or bleach
solution, starting from one end of the premises to another (from the far side of the
room working your way to the exit/door).
11. At the end of cleaning, remove all used gowns, face masks, gloves and other
contaminated items in a lined container before disposing of them with other
household/general waste. Wash your hands and hand sanitise immediately after
handling these items.
Order for removing PPE:
1. gloves
2. hand hygiene
3. gown
4. hand hygiene
5. protective eye wear (if separate from mask)
6. hand hygiene
7. mask
8. hand hygiene.
Download this page as a fact sheet:
General cleaning information for COVID-19 (PDF, 120 KB) Download here!here
Financial Assistance:
(last updated 21 April 2020, 1:45pm)
COVID-19 government news and updates for businesses.
For more COVID-19 guidance and advice about employment, tax, cash flow, health
and safety and more, visit the business.govt.nz COVID-19: Information for businesses:
Workplace operations at COVID-19 alert levels
https://www.business.govt.nz/news/covid-19-latest-news-and-updates/#e-20986
For any further advice please do not hesitate to contact us.
As always NZBPST is dedicated to serving you and bringing information to you as soon as possible. We strive to serve, support and inform you so you can be the best professional you can be.
So, until our next bulletin stay happy, focused and prepare. We are almost there.
Warm regards,
Julie Martin
New Zealand Board of Professional Skin Therapies
My Email
Posted: Thu 30 Apr 2020
Comments